ABOUT THE ARTIST



     Peter and his wife, Elizabeth, have spent the last twenty years raising their three children in Cornville, a small, rural town bordering the Western mountains of Maine.  Peter’s love for building furniture was sparked when he created his first piece as a student at the College of the Atlantic in Bar Harbor, during the early 80s.  Over the years he has filled his house, as well as customer’s homes, with his creations of functional art.  The unique lines found in Peter’s work are inspired by his intense love for Maine’s natural beauty which surround him on a daily basis.  He also draws his designs from his diverse life experiences to create one of a kind pieces of furniture.  His work is influenced by growing up submerged in different cultures from Africa to Europe as the son of an American diplomat.
        Whether he is building one piece of furniture, or one of many, Peter works up each item by hand from rough hardwood boards in his small cabinet shop.  Peter takes pride in the fact that every creation is designed, laid out, glued up, sanded, constructed and finished by himself only.  He enjoys the fact that he works alone in his one man shop and that the furniture customers purchase are pieces of art he created.  His wood working skills and attention to detail have been honed over years of experience working for two of the most accomplished furniture makers on the East coast.  Furniture is assembled using traditional mortise and tenon joinery.  The tenons are wedged and/or pinned for added strength, which guarantees that Thompson designs can be passed down from generation to generation.  Peter finishes each item using the time honored technique of hand rubbing warm linseed oil, giving it time to soak into the wood, and then applying wax.  This method protects the wood without jeopardizing the “alive” look and feel Peter desires for all his furniture. Before each piece leaves the shop for its new home it is proudly signed and dated by the artist.

          Depending on wood availability, a design starts to come to life when Peter hand selects rough hardwood boards from one of the local mills.  Peter feels that it is important to support the forest industry in Somerset county, Maine and if at all possible that is where he will purchase the “raw material” to take back to his shop. Peter likes to work with hardwoods that have been harvested by environmentally conscious woodsmen practicing the method of selective cutting, individuals that have a keen knowledge of what it takes to keep the Maine woods healthy.

      Peter looks forward to working with each customer as he designs and builds beautiful furniture for their homes.  Most days he can be found in his cabinet shop, past the Walker’s Christmas tree farm.......just before the Walton Mill Road ends.